Job Training and Support Services In-The-News: Week of June 13, 2016

Job training can provide an entry into family-sustaining jobs and careers. Many women in job training programs, however, face obstacles to success. Wraparound services—such as child care assistance, access to public benefits, and transportation or housing assistance—can help adults, particularly those with caregiving responsibilities, to complete programs that will ultimately improve their economic standing.

The WorkPlace has received a more than $3.4 million federal grant for a new initiative that will help parents trying to advance their careers to overcome their child-care barriers. The Bridgeport-based organization, which serves southwestern Connecticut, will use the U.S. Department of Labor funds to create a four-year “Strengthening Working Families” initiative.

[…] The gap in this case is the difficulty finding child-care services for people trying to pursue career or educational advancement opportunities. “It’s to look at folks where family obligations serve as a barrier to pursuing opportunities that can lead to a career, a good job or better wages,” Carbone said. “It’s a terrible choice to have to make.”

Unemployed and underemployed parents in four Memphis-area counties in Tennessee will get short-term job training, coaching, placement, childcare and transportation support with a nearly $4 million federal grant announced today. The Memphis Bioworks Foundation will manage the grant, one of 14 totaling more than $54 million from the U.S. Department of Labor’s “Strengthening Working Families Initiative.” The grant targets parents in Shelby, Fayette, Tipton and Lauderdale counties. Training will be in advanced manufacturing, health care and information technology industries.

June 13, 2016

The White House: FACT SHEET: Government, Businesses and Organizations Announce $50 Million in Commitments to Support Women and Girls

The Department of Labor will award more than $54 million in grants to give working parents the ability to train for higher wage jobs while addressing barriers faced by those with child care responsibilities. This will help working parents address key barriers to participating in and successfully completing training for middle-and high-skilled jobs in in-demand fields, as well as help bridge the gap between the workforce development and child care systems. By leveraging additional public and/or private funding, the grants promote activities that address barriers to accessing training and employment including co-location of training and child care services; increased access through unconventional training delivery times or locations; flexibilities related to scheduling and child care exigencies; and improved access to child care and other related participant supportive services. This more than doubles the grant awards previously announced as part of the Department’s Strengthening Working Families Initiative grant program.